Protests turn violent in streets of Beirut, Lebanon  

CNN's Ben Wedeman reports from Beirut, Lebanon, as police fire tear gas at protesters shooting fireworks and hurling rocks amid anti-government demonstrations.

The man who hoped to succeed Netanyahu bows out of Israeli politics for now   -22%

'It's impossible to know what will happen,' Finance Minister Moshe Kahlon tells Haaretz about his political future, after deciding not to run in the March 2 election

Iran's supreme leader says missile strikes against US were 'a day of God' video   2%

Ayatollah Ali Khamenei says Iran's missile strikes on US targets in Iraq earlier this month show it has divine support in delivering a 'slap on the face' to a 'bullying' world power. Addressing Friday prayers, Khamenei added that the killing of general Qassem Suleimani showed the US's 'terrorist nature'

• Iran: Khamenei to lead Friday prayers for first time since 2012 amid US tensions

China misses its chance to clear up doubts about the Foreign Investment Law   -20%

A day before China’s Foreign Investment Law came into effect on January 1, the authorities released a guidance “Implementing Regulations” to clarify compliance for both local governments and foreign-invested enterprises, which are allowed a five-year transitional period. However, this has failed to fully address the concerns of foreign investors and in some cases, has dismissed their concerns entirely.The draft of the Implementing Regulations was released for public comment last November, with…

Why Iran plane disaster protests mark most serious test yet   15%

Unique factors make the latest anti-government protests different from those in the past.

Column: Call Trumpism what it is: a cult   40%

The cult diagnosis was confirmed once the president called himself 'the chosen one' and his acolytes agreed.

Iran Confirms Sending Downed Ukrainian Airliner's Black Boxes To Kyiv   12%

Iran has confirmed it will send the black-box flight recorders recovered from a Ukrainian passenger jet that was shot down over Tehran on January 8 to Kyiv.

Ukrainian prime minister offers resignation  

​​"To remove any doubts about our respect for and trust in the president, I have written a resignation letter and handed it over to the president," Oleksiy Goncharuk wrote on his official Facebook page.

American Held in Egypt Prison Dies After a Hunger Strike   -16%

Moustafa Kassem, detained in Cairo in 2013 and suffering from serious medical problems, had protested his innocence.

Trump approved Soleimani assassination 7 months ago, report says   5%

Presidential directive could undermine assertion airstrike carried out as Iranian general planned to attack four US embassies

Trump slurs in rally speech after boasting about assassination of Iran commander then complaining about not winning Nobel Peace Prize  

Diatribe comes days after president prompted concerns over wellbeing with laboured address at Iran press briefing

Putin to take part in Libya peace conference in Berlin: Kremlin  

Russian President Vladimir Putin will take part in a peace conference on Libya in Germany on Sunday, as world powers step up efforts to find a lasting ceasefire. The peace talks in Berlin will focus

U.S. will work to determine if ex-ambassador Yovanovitch was under threat -Pompeo  

The U.S. State Department will do everything necessary to determine whether former U.S. ambassador Marie Yovanovitch was under threat in Ukraine, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said on Friday.

WhatsApp worst hit by internet shutdowns   43%

'It's frighteningly easy for authoritarian governments to shutdown online platforms,' researcher warns

Trump struggled to read US constitution, expose says: Its like a foreign language  

President reportedly blames others in room for difficulties

Lavrov calls for US-Iranian de-escalation after plane downing   -9%

Russia’s acting Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov on Friday urged Iran and the United States to wind down tensions after Iranian forces accidentally downed a Ukrainian passenger jet. Lavrov said

The U.S. Space Force Is Not a Joke   -5%

Last month, not long before boarding a plane to Mar-a-Lago for Christmas, President Trump signed legislation that created the newest military branch in the United States in more than 70 years: the Space Force.

Between the holiday season and more pressing military news, the creation of the Space Force did not initially make a big impression. But the president seems pleased with his newest armed service. “Everybody’s excited about that,” Trump said at a campaign rally in Ohio last week. The crowd responded with boisterous chants of “U-S-A.” Vice President Mike Pence celebrated “America’s heritage as the world’s greatest spacefaring nation” yesterday, as he swore in General Jay Raymond as chief of space operations. The new organization even has its first controversy: Over the weekend, military officials brought a Bible to the Washington National Cathedral to be blessed for swearing-in ceremonies of Space Force officers, raising objections about the coziness of church and state.

But what will the Space Force actually do?

Trump has pushed for the creation of the Space Force since the spring of 2018. But the version that became law isn’t exactly the one he might have in mind. Yes, the law, part of a larger defense-spending bill, established the Space Force as the sixth branch of the American armed forces, but it is not the stand-alone organization that Trump seemed to have promised, a “separate but equal” entity alongside the Air Force—a problematic framing for different reasons—the branch historically responsible for defending the country’s space interests.

The new Space Force instead exists inside the Department of the Air Force, in an arrangement similar to that of the Marine Corps and the Navy, which both operate under the Department of the Navy. There will be no secretary of space: As space ops chief, Raymond now holds the organization’s highest position. The law also stipulates that the Space Force must be built from existing personnel in the Air Force, and does not have the authority to hire new people. The Space Force has simply absorbed the Air Force unit that focuses on space operations, the Air Force Space Command, which was established in 1982. Its members will remain Air Force officers, but those with space-related roles will become Space Force officers in the next year and a half.

The creation of the Space Force so far amounts to little more than bureaucratic reorganization, which probably wouldn’t prompt a chorus of enthusiastic cheers without such a flashy name. “All you’re doing is reshuffling the deck chairs,” says Richard Wolf, the director of the Air Force Historical Support Division, who provided historical information to Trump administration officials about the last time the U.S. set up a new military branch—the Air Force—in 1947.

[Read: What is America’s secret space shuttle for? ]

The prospect of a Space Force has been hazy since Trump first mentioned it, mostly because the proposal seemed to be a passing thought. “I was saying it the other day—’cause we’re doing a tremendous amount of work in space—I said, maybe we need a new force. We’ll call it the Space Force,” Trump said back in 2018, to an audience of marines. “And I was not really serious. And then I said, what a great idea. Maybe we’ll have to do that.” The name called to mind images of space cadets pew-pew-pewing at enemies with plasma beams, and the suggestion became catnip for late-night-television hosts and the subject of an upcoming workplace sitcom from Steve Carell.

The reaction exasperated those in the national-security community who actually think some version of a Space Force is a good, and even long overdue, idea. “It does make sense that we’d be heading in that direction, considering how much more space is meaning to our military operations now,” the space analyst Laura Seward Forczyk told me. Security experts are divided on how the United States’ space capabilities compare to other spacefaring nations like Russia and China, but they wouldn’t turn down increased emphasis on militarized space in some capacity.

[Read: How exactly do you establish a Space Force?]

The Space Force is not a Trump invention, as many have assumed. The concept has been floating around since the 1990s, since the Gulf War showed the growing utility of satellites in ground combat. In 2001, a report from a commission chaired by former Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld recommended the U.S. create an armed service dedicated to space and keep it inside the Air Force. The suggestion was forgotten a few months later, in the aftermath of 9/11.

The concept showed up again in 2017 in bipartisan legislation in the House, which proposed the creation of a space corps, but the bill failed to gain approval in the Senate. Even Trump’s Pentagon officials, including former Defense Secretary Jim Mattis—who has since resigned—opposed the idea, saying that it would only introduce more bureaucracy in an already complex organization structure. (They quickly reversed their stance once the president expressed interest.)

Trump has presented the Space Force as something unprecedented, especially during rallies, and his administration saw an opportunity in the applause lines that always came. In the summer of 2018, the president’s campaign team sent an email to supporters chock-full of colorful logos for the future Space Force and invited them to vote for their favorite. One reimagined NASA’s logo, while another declared that “Mars Awaits.” (NASA, a civilian agency, doesn’t work on military space programs.) After clicking, supporters were delivered to a page seeking donations for Trump’s reelection.

The intent was clear, as my colleague David Graham wrote: “The Trump campaign appears to be selling the logo rights to the Space Force in exchange for campaign donations, turning the government into a tool for Trump’s own political enrichment.” It was a bold move considering the Space Force did not yet exist.

[Read: Mike Pence’s outer space gospel]

The immediate future of the Space Force involves a lot of paperwork and a dash of symbolism, rather than new uniforms and fight songs. Raymond will join the Joint Chiefs of Staff, the military officials who advise the president directly, and the service must come up with and submit an organization plan to Congress in February.

While the Space Force is now official, a slight disconnect in reality remains. “Join us as we watch history in the making. First launch of US Space Force!” the branch’s Twitter account announced earlier this month, with a link to a livestream of a SpaceX launch of its internet satellites. It was an accurate statement, in one way: The 45th Space Wing, the Air Force unit that oversees launches from Cape Canaveral, has been reassigned to the Space Force. But aside from the rebranding, there was nothing different about the mission.

Defense officials say the Space Force will become fully operational by 2024. Until then, it will no doubt remain one of Trump’s favorite namedrops on the campaign trail, a move that may jeopardize the new force’s future. Bipartisan policies—which the Space Force used to be, for the most part—have the best chances of surviving White House transition. (Most Democrats opposed the creation of any kind of Space Force, but they only got on board after the White House promised more parental-leave benefits for federal workers in exchange.) “When the president got involved and made this a campaign rallying cry, it became political,” Forczyk said. The next president may see fit to roll back the young Space Force, logos and all.

Trump snubbed by teacher of the year who knelt in front of him during anthem at college football game  

Kelly Holstine makes her point in a protest inspired by African-American athletes which is known to enrage the president

Belgrade Protesters Demand Action As Smog Wave Covers Balkans  

Protesters took to the streets of Belgrade to demand that the Serbian government enact measures to “protect the population” from the smog and pollution affecting the Western Balkan nation.

Pelosi to send Trump impeachment articles to Senate next week  

House Speaker tells Mitch McConnell that dismissing charges against president 'is a cover-up and deprives the American people of the truth'

Iran's Khamenei slams 'cowardly' European governments  

Lebanese president calls on ARMY to intervene as massive protests turn violent in Beirut (PHOTOS, VIDEO)   -20%

Lebanon’s capital Beirut has been plunged into chaos amid massive protests. Police struggled to contain the angry crowds with tear gas and water cannon, prompting President Michel Aoun to ask the military to intervene.
Read Full Article at RT.com

US makes final plea for Boris Johnson government to block Huawei from UKs 5G network  

Senior US officials visited London on Monday with a last-ditch plea that Boris Johnson’s government not allow Huawei Technologies to supply equipment for its 5G broadband networks, warning that US intelligence-sharing could be at risk.The delegation, led by deputy national security adviser Matthew Pottinger and including officials from the State Department, argued that there was no way the UK could mitigate the security risks from such a network, according to a person familiar with the meeting…

Villainous US is lying about standing with Iranian people: Khamenei   50%

The “villainous” United States government is lying about standing with the people of Iran, Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei said on Friday on his official Twitter page, in the latest

Iran Attacks U.S. Forces, Then Both Sides Stand Down   -21%

Robin Wright on Iran’s ballistic-missile attack on U.S. positions at the Ain al-Assad base, near Baghdad, and at Erbil, in northern Kurdistan, in retaliation for a U.S. drone attack in Iraq that killed the Iranian general Qassem Suleimani.

Brazil's culture secretary fired after coincidentally quoting Goebbels   -10%

Brazil’s Secretary of Culture Roberto Alvim was fired Friday, after being accused of paraphrasing Nazi Germany’s propaganda chief, Joseph Goebbels, in a speech on the government’s vision of the Brazilian arts.

Hariri: Beirut clashes 'crazy, suspicious, unacceptable'   -60%

The ongoing clashes in Downtown Beirut are crazy, suspicious and unacceptable, caretaker Prime Minister Saad Hariri said Saturday.

Libya peace conference documents nearly ready: Russia   2%

Russia’s acting Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said on Friday that documents for a Libya peace conference were nearly ready but the war-scarred country’s rivals refused to speak to each

Climate activist turns down Siemens' offer of seat on energy board  

Protest group leader Luisa Neubauer says she would lose right to criticise the company

The leader of Germany’s Friday for Future climate protests has said she turned down a seat on the board of Siemens’ new energy business amid growing anger over its role in a controversial coalmining project in Australia as she feared she would lose the right to criticise the company.

Luisa Neubauer, 23, the German face of the campaign group inspired by Swedish activist Greta Thunberg, who has campaigned alongside her, said on Monday the position would jeopardise her independence if she had taken up the offer from its chief executive, Joe Kaeser, made at a meeting in Berlin on Friday.

The News Roundup - International   -7%

A new cabinet in Russia, Iran takes responsibility for shooting down a plane and Parnas goes public.

Trump administration broke law by withholding millions in security aid to Ukraine, US government auditor says  

'Faithful execution of the law does not permit the president to substitute his own policy priorities for those that Congress has enacted into law'

After Britain appeals for weirdos, spoon bender Uri Geller applies   -6%

Spoon-bending celebrity psychic Uri Geller, 73, has applied for a job in the British government in response to an advert for "misfits" and "weirdos", saying no other candidate would possess his powers.

Editorial: Flavored vapes hook kids. Ban them. Finally   6%

If you are confused about the mixed messages coming from the federal government regarding the electronic cigarettes that are so alarmingly popular with teenagers, join the club.

Lebanese security forces use tear gas on protesters in second night of riots   -40%

Protests in Lebanon turned violent for a second night on Wednesday, with dozens injured after Lebanese security forces used batons and tear gas to forcefully break up demonstrations.

Mike Pence insists Trump had compelling evidence of imminent threat but that he cant make it public  

Vice president claims revealing information to Congress could 'compromise' sources

With no one in charge, Israel's budget deficit swelled in 2019  

Overspending reached 3.7% of GDP, leaving next government no choice but to impose spending cuts and tax hikes

Activists warn of fracking by stealth and call for acid fracking ban  

Fears grow companies may use it to get around temporary fracking moratorium

Campaigners have warned that the fracking moratorium announced by the UK government does not apply to acid fracking, a process that involves injecting acid into the earth to dissolve and fracture rock.

More than 500 academics, politicians and campaigners have signed an open letter initiated by Brockham Oil Watch calling on the government to ban the practice over fears companies may use it to get around the moratorium.

Govt boosts benefits for veterans   13%

The central government recently increased benefits for People's Liberation Army, People's Armed Police Force veterans and family members of military personnel, the Ministry of Veterans Affairs said.

The ministry worked with 19 government and departments of the Communist Party of China, including the Publicity Department of the CPC Central Committee and the National Development and Reform Commission, to produce a set of measures to improve benefits for veterans, relatives of military members and other people eligible for favorable treatment.

The measures, detailed in a document published on Tuesday, aim to boost public respect for veterans and military families and increase the attractiveness of military careers, the ministry said in a statement on Tuesday.

Guidelines listed in the document cover almost all elements of daily life, ranging from medical care, housing and education to transportation and leisure activities.

Members of the armed forces, military retirees and other qualified people will be given priority and favorable policies at designated elderly-care centers or hospitals. They will also be given free admission or discounts at museums, parks and other tourism sites.

In addition, military personnel will enjoy free rides on city buses, subway trains and other public transport, and their family members will have priority when they travel by train, ship or plane, the document said.

China has taken a host of measures over the past two years to improve benefits for veterans and military members' families.

Last February, the National Veterans Service Center was set up in Beijing. It is tasked with supporting and assisting veteran employment and businesses; helping retirees and their families who are in need; surveying and visiting veterans; handling veterans' complaints and petitions; and safeguarding their interests and rights.

Since then, veteran service centers or stations have been established at every administrative level, from community to provincial.

The central government has also published guidelines meant to help veterans find civilian jobs or start their own businesses.

Under the guidelines, each veteran is eligible for two years of free vocational training and will receive a living allowance during the training period. Employers are urged to give preference to veterans in recruitment, set lower requirements for job applicants who have served in the military and arrange periodic training for any veteran they hire.

Enterprises that hire veterans can be eligible for tax benefits if they meet certain criteria.

Authorities at the county government level and above are urged to organize at least two job fairs for military retirees each year, the guidelines stipulate.

Moreover, the Ministry of Veterans Affairs has requested better protection of veterans' rights at all levels of government.

Since the founding of the People's Republic of China in 1949, about 58 million military personnel have re-entered civilian life, according to official statistics.

In Frances Longest Protests Since 1968, Striking Workers Continue the Fight Against Neoliberalism   50%

From bus drivers to ballet dancers, workers from across France have taken to the streets in opposition to President Emmanual Macron's attempts to reshape the country into a U.S.-style neoliberal state.

The post In France’s Longest Protests Since 1968, Striking Workers Continue the Fight Against Neoliberalism appeared first on MintPress News.